Regions

New Jersey

From Wazeopedia

This page serves as the primary resource for editors of New Jersey. Review all the sections to better understand how the guidelines for this state might deviate from the overall USA or worldwide guidelines. If you have any comments or questions about this page or state refer to the community links below.

Guidance for solving User Reports in the Northeast Region has been updated as of April 2019. Please refer to the Report Handling section below.

Introduction

Thank you for your interest in editing the Waze maps for the State of New Jersey. Please note New Jersey State follows the US national guidance with a few exceptions. Be sure to click on and read every link from this page for in-depth tips, guidance and advice.

Tip: Editors are strongly encouraged to download & install the Toolbox Browser Add-on for Chrome or for Firefox. This tool will identify map errors. Use this to identify issues in areas you are working on but make sure not to be distracted by errors that do not pertain to you.

Mapping resources

Before editing the maps in New Jersey, be sure to fully review and understand the editing manual.

The Waze user community follows the Waze etiquette guidelines discussed in the Wiki. Be sure to familiarize yourself with these guiding principals while editing the maps and this Wiki, as well as when communicating with other Waze users.

Functional Classification

Please review the USA Functional Classification page for details on this topic. In rare cases, a particular road may require a different type than prescribed in the national guidance. Before changing the type of any road past the bounds of the rules, please post the situation to the New Jersey Forum to receive feedback. New Jersey resources can be found in the following links:

Statewide Mapping Resources

Use these state-wide maps for the names and numbers of Interstate, US, and State highways. They also include the names of many local roads and addresses.

New editors should consider checking into the formal mentoring program available at no charge.

The NJ editing community is using Discord for real-time and near-real-time communications between editors. Click here to join for questions, unlock requests, or other discussions with local editors. (The old GHO is retired; please join our Discord community instead.)

Community Roles

If you are presently one of the above and an editor in this State, please add yourself to the table listed below .

If you are an editor looking to become an AM, please add yourself in this table. Keep in mind, the best way to obtain AM status, is by becoming involved in the Waze community.

Mentoring

The greatest resource for editors of any rank is to learn hands on from editors with more experience than themselves. The Mentoring programs are strongly recommended, whether formal or informal.

If you have any questions or difficulties with any aspect of editing, feel free to contact any of New Jersey's Waze Champs, Country Managers, State Manager(s), or senior editors list in the table below.

You can also contact the Regional Coordinator(s) or Assistant Regional Coordinator(s) orbitc(PM) and PhantomSoul(PM)

Report Handling

Update Requests, also called User Reports (UR), in New Jersey are handled consistent with the Northeast Region guidelines. Please review the Update Request Guidelines for more information.

Cities and towns

One of the most common errors when editing the maps is when an editor creates a road and does not confirm the road by setting the city and road name (or stating it has none).

This revision of the page is currently undergoing modifications. The information and guidance is currently considered accurate enough to be followed now. Content is being prepared by one or more users. Do not make any changes before you post a message in this forum.

In NJ there are 565 municipalities, 250 Boroughs, 52 Cities, 15 Towns, 245 Townships and 3 Villages. There are no unincorporated places in the state of NJ. Every segment of every road type should have a City Name in the Primary Field. When naming a segment use the incorporated name or the CDP (Census Designated Place) name when the place is locally known and/or more commonly recognized by that name. Note that the current map shows CDP names from the 2000 Census, please refer to the 2010 Census List to determine the most current information.

Any segment with the name "Greater XX Area" is a mistake and needs to be updated to reflect the accurate place name.

In the event of duplicate city names, consider adding "Twp" if applicable to one of those places.

Alternate methods of resolving conflicting/duplicate city names is presently under discussion. Please refer to the forum New Jersey Cities and Towns for more information.

Major roads

Local Naming Guidance

New Jersey State uses the short format when naming State and County Highways/Routes and their spurs, loops, etc.

State Routes: SR-##, SR-## X (e.g. SR-70, SR-70 W)

County Routes: CR-##, CR-## X (e.g. CR-567, CR-567 SPUR)

Concurrent routes which are signed/shielded with both names, AND commonly referred to using both names together, should use both names separated by a slash (/) as the primary name, and each individual named as an alternate name. (e.g. US-1 / US-9)

Highway name descriptors, such as TRUCK, EXPRESS, etc. should be added after the name in ALL CAPS. (e.g. US-1 TRUCK, or on a concurrent road US-1 TRUCK / US-9 TRUCK)

Highways passing through a local area which have a supplementary name for the road on street signs, use the name of the Local Road in the primary field and the numbered one in the alternate field.

Locking Standard

In New Jersey we have a set minimum standard for locking roads based on segment type. Any road of a certain segment type must be locked at least to the rank (level) in the chart below. Roads may be locked higher for protection and special situations (areas with construction, tricky design, frequent mistakes, imaging inaccuracies, and the like), but should not be locked lower.

A great time to implement these locks is while bringing the road types of an area into compliance with the current US road type standards (FC and highway systems). Lock the roads based on type after they've been set to current US road type standards.

New Jersey Minimum Locking Rank Standard

Segment Type

Statewide

Freeway

5

Ramp

Highest rank of connected segments

Major Highway

3

Minor Highway

3

Primary Street

1 (Auto)

Street

1 (Auto)

Private Road

1 (Auto)

• • • • Ferry • • • •

5

|-|-|-|-|-|-|-|-|-| Railroad |-|-|-|-|-|-|-|-|-|

2

Note: Do Not Mass Edit just to update locks to these standards, these can be adjusted as you find them while editing other aspects of the segments such as FC, speed limits, naming, etc.

Some segments still warrant higher locks and care should be taken when setting segment lock to these standards to look for and protect these special setups with higher locks. Some examples; segments which are part of BDP, U-turn prevention, or using micro-doglegs, or other complex intersection setups.

Special roads

Drivable roads

New Jersey follows the standard USA guidelines for all of the following special road types.

Review the Wiki guidelines for non-drivable roads to ensure compliance with the general guidelines.

Special Road Guidelines

The following special roads are managed slightly uniquely in some states and territories.

Jughandles

This new section is currently undergoing modifications. The information presented should be considered a draft, not yet ready for use. Content is being prepared by one or more users. Do not make any changes before you post a message in this forum.

Jughandles are a special type of exit used to make left turns or U-turns. They promote overall traffic flow and often improve safety.

Background

New Jersey is especially known for using jughandles - some people call them a "New Jersey Left," and even engineering societies call them NJJI, for New Jersey Jughandle Interchange.

Jughandles typically occur on busy roadways where left turns or U-turns would be slow, dangerous and/or disruptive to traffic. Rather than have a left turn lane at such an intersection, a right-side exit is used. The exit, in various configurations, allows the driver to come back to the same intersection, but perpendicular (crossing) the originally roadway. This typically creates a safer, faster intersection. Usually there is a traffic light at the intersection, though some jughandles do not have them.

Jughandles do not exist on freeways. Since freeways are controlled-access highways, you don't find cross-streets connecting to them at-grade. They exist on highways that are not fully controlled-access, and on particularly busy local streets that may not be highways at all. (Note that the terms highways and streets above reflects real-world road configuration, not the Waze segment type.)

There are 3 kind of Jughandles in New Jersey per the NJ-DOT. They are:

Type A - Forward:

Type A jughandle with some non-standard features. Click to see full size.

The exit is on the right hand side prior to the intersection, and can accommodate traffic turning either right and left to the cross street. The exit segment connects to the cross street away from the intersection. Left or U-turn maneuver requires taking the exit, making a left onto the cross street, approaching the intersection, and then turning left (effectively a U-turn from the original roadway) or continuing straight through (effectively a left from original roadway).

Type B - U-Turn: The exit is on the right side prior to the intersection, and loops directly into the intersection. Usually the intersection must be a T-intersection (aside from the jughandle), with a cross street only on the other side of the original roadway.

Type C - Reverse: The exit is on the right, but after the intersection. It loops "backwards" to the cross street, similar to type A but from the other side of the cross street. Can be used to complete a left turn (continue straight after exiting jughandle to cross street). Can also be used to complete a u-turn (turn left after reaching intersection on cross-street), though they may be difficult or illegal if there are multiple lanes of traffic on the cross street.

Pseudo-jughandles: Sometimes, the exit is directly onto a short normal street instead of a dedicated ramp. The street may function as a Type A jughandle, by connecting immediately to the cross street of the original roadway. NJ-DOT does not classify these as jughandles, though for the purpose of mapping, we may have to make naming and typing considerations that are similar to the mapping considerations of jughandles.

Editing guidance

Special consideration must be given to Waze's detour prevention feature when jughandles are used for U-turns. The text below notes some of these considerations. If you don't follow that guidance, Waze may not want to use the jughandle for a U-turn.

This section explains how to name jughandle segments, and what segment type to apply to them.

Some of the guidance below calls for following at-grade connector rules (AGCs), since many jughandles function exactly like AGCs. For the discussion below, here is a simplified set of AGC rules:

AGCs are unnamed, and Waze simply "inherits" the name of the next segment in the route that they connect to.

An AGC should have the same type as the cross road it leads to, or the type of the road it leads from if that type is "lower." AGCs should not be of type ramp.

If for some reason an AGC must have a special name in order to give more detailed instructions, then the type should be changed to ramp.

Name and segment-typing of jughandles does not depend on jughandle type. A, B, and C jughandles are set up similarly to each other in Waze. Instead, when determining the name and segment type of a jughandle, you will primarily examine the signage leading to the jughandle exit. You may find:

Destination signage that only indicates the name of the cross street ("SIMPLE")

Destination signage that is similar to a regular exit sign ("BGS" or "LGS"), listing one or more street/highway names or a city or landmark name ("STANDARD")

No destination signage, but directional signage exists (e.g., U-Turn, Left turns). These are usually black lettered on a white background ("DIRECTIONAL")

No signage ("UNSIGNED")

To properly set up the jughandle based on signage:

For SIMPLE signed jughandles, you can typically use the AGC rules described above (unnamed, lower connection type). Waze will give the appropriate exit instruction, using the name of the cross street. Instructions will be usable even for U-turns, because we are using a series of exit/turn instructions with the name of the road at each maneuver; there is no instruction to make a U-turn, even though the effect is to create a U-turn. However, if there is any segment at the end of the jughandle which has a name that does not match the sign, the instructions may be confusing, and you may have to use exit-style naming (see STANDARD instructions immediately below). The Type A example diagram above shows a SIMPLE-signed jughandle. It is labeled Old Mill Road, the same name as the cross street. It would be a candidate for being unnamed, with a type of Primary Street (the same type as Old Mill Rd), except for the unusual feature of having a differently named segment, Low Rd, included in the end junction. For that reason, it will be treated as STANDARD instead of SIMPLE.

For STANDARD signed jughandles, use normal exit naming guidance. The exit segment type will be ramp, to prevent Waze form displaying the complex road name, which will follow the signage closely. If there are extra colored signs (e.g., a brown "State Park" sign mounted adjacent to the exit name sign), you may add them to the end of the jughandle name, but only if they provide a destination. Do not add signage about vehicle restrictions or directionals (no trucks, U-turn, etc.). In the case of the Type A diagram above, the exit sign reads "Old Mill Road," with a directional white sign, "All Turns" also attached. Our normal exit guidance calls for naming the exit "to Old Mill Rd," ignoring the directional sign. The type is ramp because we do not want to display "to Old Mill Rd" on the map. However, because of the confusion that may arise for a route that brings the driver onto Low Rd instead of Old Mill Rd, a better name is "to Old Mill Rd / Low Rd."

For jughandles with DIRECTIONAL signage only, typically treat the same as UNSIGNED (below). However, if for some reason it is necessary to provide a name, you may use the DIRECTIONAL sign's language, and make the segment of type Ramp. Examples: a) Where there are two adjacent exits, and it would be confusing to have Waze announce the turn without any name or with the name of the connecting road (which doesn't appear on any sign), then it may be appropriate to name the jughandle using the wording on the DIRECTIONAL sign, since that will best orient the driver and allow him or her to select the proper turn. b) The jughandle's end connects directly back to the original highway, typical of a Type B jughandle. It may confuse the driver to hear an instruction to exit to the highway they are already on, even for the opposite compass direction.

For UNSIGNED jughandles, typically leave unnamed. Use AGC rules as described for SIMPLE signage (above). However, you may need to seek local guidance or senior editor guidance in some situations to create an effective set of exit instructions. For example, if the jughandle might be easily confused with another nearby junction, or where the name of the connecting street may create an ambiguity, we may need to invent a unique name for the jughandle so that it gives better instructions. In such situations, use ramp segment type, to prevent display of the invented name.

For UNSIGNED pseudo-jughandles, you will typically leave the street name as-is, matching the true street name. However, if more complex instructions are required, you may need to insert a stub ramp between the highway and the start of the regular street type, to accommodate the longer naming and to avoid giving a real street a false name (especially problematic if there are houses, businesses, or any other location that has an address number along the segment).

Detour prevention errors

Special handling to avoid incorrect Waze Detour Prevention:

Waze has a special routing rule designed to prevent Waze from leading a driver off a highway and then immediately re-enter the same highway (the exit/entrance may be measured by Waze as slightly faster, but is confusing, awkward, and may not be legal). The way Waze does this is by examining the names of the next several segments in a route. If one of them is a mismatch, and then some segments later a match appears again, Waze will make some effort to avoid that route.

When a jughandle creates a U-turn, Waze may inappropriately detect it as exactly such a detour. For example, consider an undivided highway ("Highway 99"), with jughandle used for a U-turn. For our example, the jughandle is an unsigned Type A, leading to cross street ("Plain St"). If Waze is going to lead the driver through this jughandle U-turn, the segment name sequence would be:

Illustration of the example

Route that may be impossible due to BDP logic

Highway 99

Unnamed jughandle segment

Plain St

Highway 99

Segments 1 and 4 have the same name, but the two middle segments do not. Waze sees this as a detour, and will try for a different route, even if somewhat longer and slower.

To prevent Waze from falsely considering this to be a detour, you must provide Highway 99 as an alternate name to the jughandle and to any cross street segment(s) between the jughandle and the intersection. This will cause Waze to see all four segments as having the same name (even though two primary names are different).

Changed jug attributes to prevent false positive BDP and allow route - now ramp, named "to Plaint St" and alt name matching highway. Same alt should be applied to intervening segment of Plain St.

Since the jughandle is unnamed, it is somewhat awkward to provide an alternate name. You may elect to name the jughandle "to Plain St" so that it has a primary name, before you add Highway 99 as the alternate. If you do so, make the jughandle of type ramp, so the exit/entrance-style naming does not display.

Note that if Highway 99 was a divided highway with separate one-way north and south segments, the sequence above would normally change to:

Highway 99 W

Unnamed jughandle segment

Plain St (between jughandle and intersection)

Plain St (between 99 W and 99 E)

Highway 99 E

In that case, the first and last segments no longer have the same name. You would not need to provide the highway name as an alternate to the middle segments, since detour prevention would never be considered by Waze anyway. In the same scenario, if the north and south segments did not include the N and S cardinals, you would have to go back to alternate names. Another options would be to bring naming of the entire highway up to standard by adding the cardinal N and S along the entire highway.

Another situation where alternate naming is not required is where the U-turn is not permitted anyway. This occurs where no left turn is allowed from the cross street into the reverse lanes of the original roadway.

Parking Lot Roads

This state uses the following national standard guidelines found in the Wiki for Parking Lot Roads.

Alleys

This state uses the following unique guidelines for mapping alleys.

Alleys should always be mapped if they have a name.

Alleys should always be mapped if they are the sole access to a home or business.

Alleys should always be set to "Parking Lot Road" type. Do not use the "Alley" type in WME as that works differently than the usage case in NJ.

Alleys are normally mapped if they are acknowledged by the municipality.

If an alley does not meet the above criteria, mapping is optional. Leave the name field blank.

Note: Be careful adding alleys which will be closer to the destination pins for house numbers, as this can cause navigation to addresses on that block to route onto the alley instead of the main road. It may be better not to map these alleys, or you may have to adjust all the address pins to be closer to the actual roads.

Dirt Roads

This state uses the following national standard guidelines found in the Wiki for Dirt Roads.

Note: In other Regions/Countries, the usage of Dirt Roads-4x4 Trails may vary greatly.

Places

New Jersey follows the USA standard for Places. Do not deviate from the guidelines without first obtaining consensus to do so via the state forum linked on this page.

Locking Standard

Places considered fundamental to the functioning of the Waze app, such as Gas Stations, should be locked to Rank 4.

Complex, intricate, or crucial Places such as Hospitals, Police Stations, Fire Departments, Airports, Parks, etc. should be locked at least to Rank 4.

This is to prevent loss of data due to automatic acceptance of Place Update submissions from Trusted Users, or Place Update Request approvals from other editors without careful examination.

If you do not have a high enough enough rank to lock the place a Rank 4+, please lock it as high as you can, and consider asking a higher rank AM, SM, CM, or Champ to lock it higher.

Cameras

Not every camera-looking device at an intersection is a speed or red light camera. Generally speaking:

a speed camera takes a photograph of a vehicle when it passes by the camera at too high a speed.

a red light camera takes a photograph of a vehicle that enters an intersection after the light is red. In some areas, it takes the photograph when a vehicle is not clear of the intersection some period after the light turns red.

General Maintenance

Primary issues for maintaining the road network

Remove unneeded junction nodes.

Disable all U-Turns at junction nodes (when applicable). Do this by pressing 'Q'.

Remove excess geometry nodes (those which are not changing the geometry of a segment). When the geometry node is very near the end of a segment, double check while zoomed-in to see if the geometry node is actually changing the turn angle.

Inspect and correct connectivity of necessary junctions.

Ensure there is no connectivity of non-drivable segments to drivable ones.

Inspect and correct overpasses/underpasses to ensure that the segments are on different levels, and do not have a junction node where they meet.

Ensure that any roads crossing at the same elevation level have a junction node connecting them.

Ensure that Update Requests are being handled correctly, courteously and in a timely fashion.

Area Managers

The table below identifies the editors also designated as Area Managers or higher who are editing in New Jersey. If you have any questions, please consider contacting them directly as needed. If you are an Area Manager that covers New Jersey, or a USA Country Manager that does a lot of work in New Jersey, please add yourself to this list (alphabetical by username) in the correct rank section.

The editor who also serves as the Regional Coordinator for New Jersey is automatically listed at the top of the table. That editor may not be highly active in this state and therefore may not be listed separately in the table.